A fascinating miscellany of facts, "es & tales. Dip in or find yourself engrossed in an alternative tour of the great art & artists in the National Gallery, London. This is not your usual art gallery guide. Instead, this volume gets you up close & personal to individual masterpieces in the National Gallery. Meet some of the colourful characters captured in portraits & the people who brought these treasures to the National Gallery. Read about the painting that took flight down a mountainside, the portrait which made a cameo appearance in a James Bond film, the paintings that conceal paintings, only discovered years later. This book unlocks the hidden history of masterpieces in the National Gallery, until now buried in larger books, articles or archives. Immerse yourself in a treasury of facts, discoveries & anecdotes. Many are touching, some highly amusing, while others are surprising, but all are addictive reading. If the Paintings Could Talk presents these accounts in an A–Z format, richly illustrated & skilfully cross-referenced with other entries in the book, leading art lovers on an intriguing journey.